Bucket-clip for aerial wire-rope tramways.



PATENTED MAY 2, 1905.

' B. 0. RIBLET.

BUCKET GLIP FOR AERIAL WIRE ROPE TRAMWAYS.

APPLIOATION FILED APR.18. 1904.

UNITED STATES Patented May 2, 1905..

PATENT OFFICE.

BYRON G. RIBLET, ()F SPOKANE, WASHINGTON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 788,674, dated May 2, 1905.

Application filed April 18, 1904. Serial No. 203,789.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, BYRON C. RIBLn'r, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Spokane, in the county of Spokane and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Rope and Bucket Clips for Aerial ire-Rope Tramways; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, and to the figures of reference marked thereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to improvements in rope and bucket clips for aerial wire-rope tramways; and the objects of my invention are,

first, to provide a clip having a wrist-pin con- 7 nection between the buckets and the tractionrope of aerial wire-rope tramways; second, to provide a clip to one end of which the buckets are pivotally connected to swing horizontally in the direction in which the bucket is moving, and which is rigidly connectedat its opposite end to the traction-rope, and which is provided with a wrist-pin joint at its central portion arranged to permit the bucket to swing vertically at right angles to the axis of the traction-rope and to the direction in which it is moving above and below the horizontal plane about forty-five degrees; third, to provide a simple, durable, and inexpensive rope and bucket clip. I attain these objects by the mechanism illustrated in the aceompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a perspective view of a fragment of an aerial wire-rope tramway, showing a bucket mounted on the track or stationary rope and my improved clip connecting the bucket to the traction or running rope. Fig. 2 is a plan view of a clip embodying my invention. Fig. 3 is a side elevation of Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is anend elevation of the socket-bearing of the wrist-pin. Fig. 5 is an end elevation of the wrist-pin and the plate that forms the body of the clip. Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the socket-bearings of the wrist-pin and the stud that is pivotally connected to the bucket; and Fig. 7 is aperspective view of the hub-bearing portion of the clip that is secured to the tramway-bucket, to which the stud of the socket portion of the clip is pivotally connected.

Similar figures of reference refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

Referring to the drawings, the numeral 1 designates the track or stationary rope; 2, the traction or running rope; 3, the trolley 01 the bucket; 4, the pendants oi the bucket; 5, the body of the bucket; 6, the cross-bar oi the pendants, and 7 my improved clip operatively connecting the bucket to the traction-rope. Hereinafter the general term bucket will be given .to all the members of the bucket above enumerated and will be designated by the numeral 5.

My improved clip consists of a narrow plate 9, which is several times longer than its width and of about the thickness of the tractionrope. In one of the side edges of this plate I form a curved groove 10, which fits against the curved side of the traction-rope. The opposite side of the plate is provided adjacent to its ends with projecting lugs 11, which project from the opposite sides of the plate flush with its rear side. Through these lugs apertures 12 are formed. Through these apertures I place the threaded ends Of V-bolts 13, the nuts 14: of which screw against the rear side of the lugs and plate. The curved ends of these V-bolts are flattened out into a band portion which lies close to the sides of the plate and extends beyond it and surrounds the traction-rope, which is clamped to the plate in the groove 10 by tightening thenuts on the ends of these bolts against the lugs or the plate. From the central portion of the op posite side of the plate from the groove 10 a stem 15 projects at right angles to the groove fora short distance. On the end of this stem and extending across and beyond it on each side and parallel with the groove of the plate I form a cylindrical pin or stem or short shaft 16, which I term a wrist-pin. To the crossbar 6 of the bucket I secure a plate 17, preferably by rivets 18. The sides of this plate are provided with lips 19, that overlap and fit closely the side edges of the cross-bar. From the center of this plate 17 a hub 20 projects, which forms a bearing for a stud 21, which forms a part of the socket-bearing of the wrist-pin. 22 designates a socket-bearing, and comprises a tubular socket portion from which the round stud 21 projects. 21 extends loosely through the hub of the plate and through an aperture in the crossbar. A washer-22 is placed on it against the cross-bar, and a split pin 23 is placed through its end at the side of the washer, thus pivotally securing the bucket to the stud of the socket. The socket comprises a cylindrical easing the bore of which fits pivotally on the wrist-pin. The socket is longer than the wrist-pin, and its axial bore extends through it from one end to close to the adjacent end and terminates in a square end, against which one'end of the wristpin bears. The opposite end of the socket extends beyond the end of the wrist-pin, and in its end I fit a disk plug 24:, which I preferably secure to the casing by a split pin 25. In the front end of the socket I form a vertical curved slot 26, which extends through the shell of the socket and forms a pathway for the stem 15 of the plate. A horizontal slot 27 extends from the slot 26 through the shell of the casing to its plug-receiving end, which forms an entrance through the socket into the vertical slot of the socket for the stem. The vertical slot extends far enough around the circumference of the shell of the socket to permit the socket and the bucket to swing vertically on the wrist-pin about forty-five degrees above and below the horizontal center of the clip, as indicated by the-dotted line 28 in Fig. 3. To insert or remove the wrist-pin from the socket, it is only necessary to remove the split pin and'the plug from the socket and then slide the stem of the wrist-pin out of the socket through the horizontal slot 27.

My improved wrist-pin or knuckle-joint clip makes a very large firm vertically-swinging joint for the bucket relative to the traction-rope, while the stud and the hub-plate make a strong firm horizontal-swinging joint for the bucket on the clip.

Having described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a rope and bucket clip, a plate including bolts connected to said plate and arranged to clamp said plate to a traction-rope, a wristpin on said plate, a socket-bearing having a lateral opening and pivotally mounted on said wrist-pin, and a pivotal connection between said socket and a tramway-bucket.

2. In a rope and bucket clip, a plate secured at one end to a traction-rope,a wrist-pin at the opposite end of said plate, a socket pivotally The stud mounted on said wrist-pin,and havingalateral opening, a block detachably secured in said opening, and means for pivotally connecting said socket to a tramway-bucket.

3. Inarope and bucketclip,the combination with a hub-bearing secured to a tramwaybucket, a stud pivotally secured to said hubbearing of said tramway-bucket, and a cylindrical socket at the opposite end of said stud, of a plate secured to a traction-rope, and a cylindrical stem or wrist-pin on said plate, fitting pivotally in said cylindrical socket, and means for detachably securing said stem or wrist-pin in said cylindrical socket, substantially as described.

4:. In a rope and bucket clip, a plate havinga curved groove in one side edge adapted to fit the curvature of a traction-rope, apertures in said plate adapted to receive the ends of yoke or V bolts, V-bolts in the apertures of said plate arranged to clamp said plate to a tractionrope, a stem projecting from said plate, a cylindrical pin arranged across said stem parallel to the curved groove in said plate, a cylindrical socket-bearing pivotally mounted on said pin, a recess in said socket adapted to receive said stem, a recess in said socket adapted to permit said socket to rotate on said pin through apredetermined arc of a circle around the axis of said pin, means for detachably securing said pin in said cylindrical socket-bearing, and a pivotal connection between said socket-bearing and a tramway-bucket at right angles to the pivotal axis of said pin-and-socket connection, substantially as described.

5. In a rope and bucket clip, the combination of a hub-bearing member comprising a plate having side lugs arranged to fit against and be secured to the side and edges of the cross-bar of a tramway-bucket; a stud pivotally mounted in said hub-bearing, means for securing said stud in said hub-bearing,a socket on the opposite end of said stud, a plate arranged to be secured to a traction-rope, and a pivotal connection between said stud and said plate, having its axis at right angles to the axis of the pivotal connection between said stud and said bucket, substantially as described.

6. In a rope and bucket clip, the combination of the traction-rope, the bucket, the plate, the V-bolts and the cylindrical wrist-pin, with the cylindrical socket-bearing pivotally supporting said wrist-pin, the plug-disk and the split pin for securing said wrist-pin in said socket, substantially as described.

7. In a rope and bucket clip, the combination of the rope and the bucket, the plate arranged to be clamped to said traction-rope, the wrist-pin on said plate, the cylindrical socket-bearing pivotally mounted on said wrist-pin to swing vertically at right angles to the longitudinal axis of said rope, a predetermined distance, with the hub-bearing pivotally mounted on said socket-bearing at right angles to the pivotal axis of said socket and wrist-pin connection and secured to said bucket substantially as described.

8. In a rope and bucket clip, the combination of the rope and the bucket of the hubbearing secured to said bucket, the plate secured to said rope and the cylindrical socket stud member pivotally secured at one end to said hub-bearing and said bucket, and pivot- I ally secured at its opposite end to said plate substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in presence of two Witnesses.

BYRON C. RIBLET. Witnesses:

G. SARGENT ELLIOTT, ALWIN H. WHEATLEY. 

